The plant for big picture thinker: Mastering the chain from production, processing to consumption

Linking to upscale raw material area

Tran Minh Tam, liviing in Group 4 of Kim Chau street, Binh Dinh ward (An Nhon commune, Binh Dinh), took first place in the "Creative Startup Farmer in Binh Dinh" contest with his project named "Cultivating seedlings and processing Bo Chinh ginseng, ginseng tea, and ginseng wine."

Tam decided to collaborate with other farmers to cultivate the ginseng on 6.5 ha in Binh Thanh commune (Tay Son district), in addition to his 4.5 ha cultivation area in groups 3 and 4 in Kim Chau and Phu Cat districts. He aims to take the initiative in terms of raw material to serve the processing stage. The area of land located by the Kon River is flat and ideal for planting this precious herb.

"By forming a partnership in ginseng cultivation in Binh Thanh commune, we promise to split 50% of the earnings to stakeholders after harvesting and selling the products. I am responsible for all investments ranging from seed supply to the installation of automatic irrigation system, technical process transfer, and product underwriting at the normal price paid by pharmaceutical companies. The other parties reciprocate 6.5 ha of land and the caring work throughout the crop. The cost of fertilizer and biological pesticides investment during the crop will be split in half. This approach will be implemented in early April this year," Tran Minh Tam said.

Tam is now collaborating with numerous local farming households to harvest Bo Chinh ginseng. He is in charge of introducing growing and caring techniques, selling seedlings while take half a price first and receiving the rest when products are sold.

Tam failed several times while involved in direct production during the trial process. He had to adjust many times and, of course, incurred the loss from which he eventually gained expertise. Now he has established a consistent ginseng root production procedure in each stage, from growing the plant to boosting nutrients for ginseng roots. He also calculates the dose of each type of fertilizer for each ginseng development stage. Farmers involved in Bo Chinh ginseng production with Tam now follow that technique and are no longer concerned about failure.

Processing multiple products to increase output

Tam is expanding the raw material region while simultaneously processing several goods from Bo Chinh ginseng to expand consumption routes. Having nearly 5 ha of Bo Chinh ginseng planted in An Nhon town and Phu Cat district, Tam plans to harvest the roots by the end of 2023. Even if the yield is only 75%, he is certain to harvest at least 50 tons of ginseng roots, not to mention the amount of ginseng he gained from the production link through underwriting contracts.

With such a significant output of ginseng root, Tam is actually more concerned about consumption at the moment. After harvesting 20,000 Bo Chinh ginseng planted when he started his business, in addition to retailing for local men to buy and consume, he also make a wine brand called "Tam Linh's Bo Chinh ginseng wine" to serve the locals and beyond the province.

According to Tam, developed countries extract Bo Chinh ginseng flower to manufacture perfume. At 45 days, the ginseng plant begins to develop hybrid flowers. By the third month, the flowers are in full bloom, and each plant produces approximately 4 kilograms of flowers during the season. 1 ha can host 72,000 Bo Chinh ginseng plants, and each of them produces 4 kg of flowers each year, resulting in a total of 288,000 kg of flowers/ha.

Tam has also registered with the functional department of An Nhon town (Binh Dinh) to make three primary ginseng product lines: ginseng tea, ginseng cereal powder, and ginseng jam. Tam has also worked with businesses in the region that specialize in the purchasing and manufacture of herbs to market Bo Chinh ginseng root.

The more farmers become involved with the Bo Chinh ginseng plant, the more farmers will be lifted out of poverty and headed into prosperity. According to Tam's calculation, if rice cultivation is done for profit, then after subtracting all expenditures such as hiring a plow to till the field, purchasing seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, harvesting, 2 crops each year, 1 sao (Vietnamese measurement, equivalent to 497 m²) would only bring a profit of approximately VND 1 million. Hence, 20 saos only make VND 20 million each year, not to mention the owner's caring work costs. If the rice harvest fails due to unfavorable events, farmers' income will be considerably lower. While 1 ha of land is now planted with ginseng, farmers still have a net profit of more than VND 500 million after subtracting expenditures, which may be up to 30 times higher.

"My Bo Chinh ginseng products have been designated as an OCOP product. When Bo Chinh ginseng is acknowledged as an OCOP product, it will improve customer trust and confirm its market position, promising a potential path for output. Now, I have a firm that specializes in selling Bo Chinh ginseng seeds, directing planting practices, and marketing products around the country. In particular, the firm has inked a deal with a partner in Gia Lai to provide the Bo Chinh ginseng seeds and underwrite the products for a field with estimate area of 40 ha," Tran Minh Tam said.